Louisiana French/Verbs and Tenses

In the previous units we learned a number of useful verbs, être, avoir, aller, etc. Now we are going to learn how to modify those verbs and combine them with other structures to move beyond the present tense and talk about things that happened in the past and in the future.

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In Cajun French verb forms have been simplified when compared to International French. In most cases if you know the infinitive form for a verb and the present and imperfect tenses of a few helper verbs, then you can say just about anything you want.

The helper verbs are être, avoir, aller, and venir. In this lesson we'll see how to talk about an event that has just happened by using the verb venir.

To say that something has just happened, Cajuns would use the following structure:

subj. + present tense form of venir that matches the subj. + de + infinitive

Just to remind you, venir is conjugated in the present tense like this:

Venir (Present Tense)

Je viens

On vient

Tu viens

Vous-autre vient

Il vient

Ils viennent (viennont)

Note that even though the third person plural (ils viennent) is spelled differently, it sounds exactly like viens and vient. The variation (viennont) is pronounced differently and heard in many locales. However, the rest are pronounced vee-an.

Also note that if the infinitive begins with a vowel, then the de is contracted with the infinitive, e.g. d'aller.

One of the ways of speaking and writing that make Louisiana French identifiably different from International French is in the way certain things are said or written. For example, when a Cajun wants to say that something it happening right now, they'll use a construction (the present progressive tense) that isn't found in International French at all. This is very similar to the same tenses in English, for in both Louisiana French and English this is translated as the difference between, I go to the store, and, I am going to the store. The first is the regular present tense while the second is the present progressive tense. And it is to be noted that as in English this is the form used to talk about something that you are doing or that is taking place. Here is the conjugation:

To practice the present progressive tense, a lesson is available in BYKI's List Central: Cajun 11 "Action in progress (A)"

In Cajun Self-Taught, Rev. Daigle shows how to use après as the "quasi-verb" to get:

Examples with Après as a Verb

Va après de l'eau.

Go get some water (now).

Viens après des patates.

Come get some potatoes (now).

Va après ton père.

Go get your father (now).

While it is correct to use the form of the verb être after the subject and before aprés, the vast majority of the time you will hear this elided out. In other words you will simply hear J'aprés parler à toi (I'm speaking to you), or, on aprés aller ou pas? (Are we going or not?)

We can build on what we learned in the previous lesson to talk about events that happened at a definite time in the past and have completed. The formula differs from the present progressive (see the previous lesson) only in that the imperfect form of être is used instead of the present.

subj. + imperfect form of être + après + infinitive

Here are the imperfect forms of être:

Être (Past Tense)

J'étais [j'étais]

On était

Tu étais

Vous-autre était

Il était

Ils étaient

Again, all the forms are pronounced the same way: ay-tay.

Now for some examples:

Examples with Être (past progressive)

J'étais après écrire.

I was writing.

Tu étais après dormir.

You were sleeping.

Il était après marcher.

He was walking.

Typically, you'll encounter this construction when the past action is combined with some other event. For example:

You can talk about an event that is about to happen by using the construction:

subj. + present tense of être + entrain de + infinitiive.

In colloquial English, the translation is "to be fixing to". Here are some examples:

Examples with En train de

Jean est en train de travailler dans son jardin.

John is about to / fixing to work in his garden.

Asteur Marie est en train de partir.

Mary is about to / fixing to leave now.

Ils sont en train d'aller.

They are about to / fixing to go.

Le band est en train de commencer.

The band is about to / fixing to start (playing).

J'sus en train de laver mon char.

I am about to / fixing to wash my car.

Note that this construction is used also in International French, but it doesn't convey the same meaning. The expression en train de in International French indicates present progressive action (see above).

For the beginner one of the appealing aspects of Louisiana French is its simplicity. As we have seen, if you learn the infinitive forms of the core verbs, you'll be able to express most of what you want to say in Louisiana French.

Talking and writing about future events or about what will happen in the future is accomplished with this construction:

subj. + present tense form of aller + infinitive.

Just to remind you, the present tense conjugation of aller is:

aller (Present Tense)

Je vais [j'vas]

On va

Tu vas

Vous-autre va

Il va

Ils vont

Often you'll see je vais written as j'vas. This is fine because it reflects the actual Cajun pronunication of je vais, sh-vah (not sh-vay, as in International French). All forms above (aside from vont) are pronounced like vah.

And now for some examples:

Examples of standard future

Je vais cuire le dîner.

I'm going to cook dinner.

Il va être icitte à dix heure.

He will be here at ten o'clock.

Ils vont pas répondre leur téléphone.

They will not answer their telephone.

On va t'embêter.

We will bother you.

Vous-autre va salir tout la maison avec ça fatras.

Y'all are going to dirty the whole house with that trash.

Note that when you are forming negative statements, the word pas goes between the form of aller and the infinitive, like this:

subj. + present tense form of aller + pas + infinitive.

When forming questions about what will happen in the future, you start with one of the question words (équand, quoi, comment, éoù, etc.) then follow with the statement worded as in the formula above. In Louisiana French, questions are form with verbal intonation rather than by subject-verb reversal.

To talk about events that will happen at a definite time in the future, Cajuns use the future progressive tense. Like the past and present progressive tense, this tense is built with the aide of être après, like this:

subj. + future form of être + après + infinitive.

Let's review the conjugation of être in the future tense.

être (Future Tense)

Je serai [j's'ra]

On sera

Tu seras

Vous-autre sera

Il sera

Ils seront

Again, all forms except the third person plural are pronounced the same, s'rah.

We use the imperative form when we want to tell some one to do something, like when we are making a request or giving a command. You use the imperative to tell or ask someone to do or not to do something.

Forming the imperative in Cajun French is simple, just use the first person singular form of the verb if you are talking to one person. E.g. Mange pas. Don't eat.

If you are addressing more than one person, you use the second person plural vous form. E.g. Mangez pas. Don't eat (y'all).

If you want to include yourself in the commanded action, then use the verb Allons plus the infinitive. Allons dancer! Let's dance.

↑If you are following along with Rev. Daigle's Cajun Self-Taught, note that in that book the accent over the "e" in aprés is different. He argues this is the correct way it sounds in Cajun. Après is generally used in other texts, including Rev. Daigle's A Dictionary of the Cajun Language.